As TnTina drove her boat back towards the mainland, she couldn't help but feel good about her meetup with Skye. It proved that Skye could be nice, if she chose to be nice. Was it worth going back to Ghost and asking for forgiveness?

No. It wouldn't be as simple as that. If they even allowed her to come back after her desertion, she would be controlled so strictly that she would lose all hope of freedom. She wouldn't even have an illusion of freedom once Midas was finished.

No, she couldn't ever go back. Besides, Sunny Shores was chill. She could hang out there until she made her mind up. Soon, the mainland came into view, the beach expanding across the horizon.

But, something wasn't quite right. There was a significant lack of people, and structures had been set up on the beach, all black with a white logo on them. Maybe she would be able to make it out if she got a little closer...

TnTina stamped on the boat's brake. The Imagined Order was in Sunny Shores... but why? She could see IO Guards interrogating DJ Yonder. Then, they grabbed him and pulled him into one of the tents! And, at the final moment, he made one fatal mistake: a wave at TnTina to run.

No! Why did he do that?! TnTina accelerated through a U-turn as several IO speedboats pulled out of Sunny Shores. TnTina was quick, but the speedboats were quicker. But how long could they go on for?

Apparently, a while. She was way out to sea when the IO speedboats caught up. Eventually, she had no choice but to stop. She would have to find another way to escape them.

"TnTina," one of the guards said.

"Yeah? Who's asking?" TnTina shot back.

"Me."

TnTina froze as Doctor Slone herself got out of one of the boats and climbed into TnTina's, right behind her. She pulled out a pistol and aimed it at the back of TnTina's head. In her wing mirror, TnTina could see Slone give her a cruel smile.

"Tina Kaboom, nickname TnTina, you will be shot and killed right here if you do not comply. I'm going to ask you some questions, and you are going to answer them truthfully, or die. Tina, let's begin," Slone explained.

"Only my friends call me Tina," TnTina replied, seeming braver than she felt.

"That would explain why only Skye calls you that, then?"

TnTina looked at the floor, outraged. How dare she-

"Question 1. How long have you been here, in days, please?"

"About 16 days."

Slone paused.

"Question 2. Have you gone back to the mainland for any reason?"

"Yes."

"Question 3. Why?"

"I had to see Skye, I had to check if she was alright."

"I suppose I should be more specific. You cannot lie, but you cannot bend the truth either. So, I ask you again, why?"

"I was delivering the parts for Siona and Dio's ship, so they can get home."

Slone seemed quite annoyed at this, but she didn't shoot.

"Question 4. Where did you get the parts from?"

TnTina thought for a moment. Should she sell India Oscar out? It would guarantee her survival, but put India in quite a pickle. Of course, TnTina owed India nothing, but she didn't want her to die, especially after she helped.

"Some random person gave it to me. I can't remember her name," TnTina decided to say.

"Ok. Question 5. What did she look like?" Slone narrowed her eyes.

"She was white, with light brown hair and light brown eyes."

"Question 6. How tanned was her skin?"

It was at that moment that TnTina knew that Slone knew that India had been there. At least, she suspected it. Whether that was also true for Crawley, she had no idea.

"Not that tanned. A little," TnTina said, hoping that Slone would accept her description as some sort of eyewitness variation.

Slone turned from TnTina and hopped back into her own boat. She could only make out snippets of the conversation that Slone had with her guards, but she did catch something significant.

"It can't be India Oscar. Those Ghost people hate us, so TnTina would give us her name in an instant. I mean, there's a chance that she is, but India's been loyal to us so far," TnTina heard Slone whisper.

Slone glanced at TnTina, as did all of the guards.

"Take her. She might end up being useful," Slone said.

"What? But I did everything you asked!" TnTina cried, as two guards grabbed her arms. She tried to wriggle free, but they had an iron grip on her.

"It's not personal. I just think that you'll be more useful to us alive," Slone smiled.

The two guards dragged TnTina out of the boat and into one of theirs, then sped off towards the mainland. The closer they got, the more that TnTina could see the extent of the makeshift IO base.

The largest building seemed to be enclosed on all sides, other than one door on the front that stayed closed. The two guards pushed TnTina inside of that building, then shut and locked the door behind her. She tried to turn and break out before the door closed completely, but she wasn't fast enough, and she was left at the door, banging on it in desperation and frustration.

Then, TnTina caught the sound of crying from behind her. She turned to the room, which was completely void of furniture and almost in pitch black, to find DJ Yonder without his metal suit, blubbering in the corner. He was wearing a black vest and he had bandages around his arms. On his legs he wore faded green jeans with kneepads. It appeared that he was all dressed up to join IO.

"DJ Yonder, what are you doing here?" TnTina asked him.

"Crawley doesn't actually love me. He lied to trick me into giving him my name and stuff. Also, call me John," DJ Yonder sobbed.

"An IO person tricking someone for their benefit? Sounds familiar."

"What do you mean?"

"Note: if any member of the IO tries to get your trust, their first move once they have it will be to stab you in the back. Basically, trust no one unless you know 100% that they're not a part of the Imagined Order."

"How do I know you're not a part of the Imagined Order?"

"How do I know you're not a part of the Imagined Order?"

John looked at the floor glumly, while TnTina looked around.

"I think I have a way out of here. Are you in or not?" TnTina asked John.

John nodded.

"Good. Well, you may want to cover your ears, as my plan begins with 'ex' and ends in 'plosives'."

"You're gonna blow this place up?" John shouted.

"Ever wanted to find out how thick the walls of this cell really are?"

"I mean, yes, but surely there is some other way - a safer way - out of here?"

"I know, but no other way would be as fun, you have to admit."

"Ok, fine! But if I die, then you'll have to live with the guilt of my death."

"Honestly, I think if the plan backfires, the only thing left of me and you will be a pile of ash."

John shivered at the thought, but it was followed by a nod, and he crouched in the corner of the room with his fingers in his ears. TnTina pulled a grenade out of her pocket and pulled the pin before joining John again.

"3! 2! 1!" she cried.

And at the end, the bomb detonated. TnTina and John were both knocked over, and the wall was obliterated, pieces of steel flying every which way.

"Now what?" John said when he had gotten up.

"Run!" TnTina shouted.

And they did. As IO Guards began to realise what was happening, they began to fire in their direction, bullets spraying all around them. John screamed, and TnTina turned to see that he had been shot in the forearm. It was bleeding wildly, and he tried to stem the wound by covering it with his hand, but the dark red liquid seeped through.

"He shot me! He shot me!" John shrieked.

TnTina pushed past John and pulled out her Boom Bow. Jules had designed the quiver to produce explosive arrows as she fired them, so she had no fear when she shot them into the crowd.

"You best stop shooting if you don't wanna explode!" TnTina shouted.

And it worked. All of the IO Guards stopped shooting to save their own lives. Of course, TnTina knew that they would all be killed for their betrayal to the IO anyway, but she didn't really care.

"TnTina...?" she heard John say from behind him.

"What?" she snapped, turning around.

But, she could instantly see what was up. A woman was stood there, around TnTina's height, with her red and black hair tied in a bun on her head. One of her eyes was brown, but the other was bright blue - the whole thing was a bright neon blue. Her dress was like a tight fitting shadow, ending in a short skirt. She also had black socks, a grey kneepad and black high heels on top of her black tights. And, in one of her black-gloved hands, she was holding a pistol, which she pointed right at TnTina. She knew that she was in trouble when she saw the IO logo on the pistol.

"I would be very careful if I were you," she said in a dark, menacing voice.

TnTina dropped her Boom Bow and raised her hands. She should've just stayed in the cell.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Word Count: 1633 Words